Top Opinion

It is so corrupt and under educated here that NOLA does have a chance. La is so stupid it didnt even look at the results of Andrew or Ivan La got and will get again a Major one and they still will NOT get it. I have lived in both places and La is just a mess compared to Fla. I hope they have learned some thing from Katrina but my guess is all they have learned is how to steal more

The people of Miami are self reliant. They prepare for hurricanes and evacuate when needed. On the other hand the people of New Orleans were depending on the government to do everything for them, they did not even do the basic things like stock up on food and water. They created this disaster and won't take any responsibility for their own inaction.

Say a hurricane is about to destroy the city you live in. Two questions:
1. What would you do?
2. What would you do if you were black?
Sadly, the two questions don't have the same answer.
To the first: Most of us would take our families out of that city quickly to protect them from danger. Then, able-bodied men would return to help others in need, as wives and others cared for children, elderly, infirm and the like.
For better or worse, Hurricane Katrina has told us the answer to the second question. If you're black and a hurricane is about to destroy your city, then you'll probably wait for the government to save you.
This was not always the case. Prior to 40 years ago, such a pathetic p...

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The people of Miami are self reliant. They prepare for hurricanes and evacuate when needed. On the other hand the people of New Orleans were depending on the government to do everything for them, they did not even do the basic things like stock up on food and water. They created this disaster and won't take any responsibility for their own inaction.

Say a hurricane is about to destroy the city you live in. Two questions:
1. What would you do?
2. What would you do if you were black?
Sadly, the two questions don't have the same answer.
To the first: Most of us would take our families out of that city quickly to protect them from danger. Then, able-bodied men would return to help others in need, as wives and others cared for children, elderly, infirm and the like.
For better or worse, Hurricane Katrina has told us the answer to the second question. If you're black and a hurricane is about to destroy your city, then you'll probably wait for the government to save you.
This was not always the case. Prior to 40 years ago, such a pathetic performance by the black community in a time of crisis would have been inconceivable. The first response would have come from black men. They would take care of their families, bring them to safety, and then help the rest of the community. Then local government would come in.
No longer. When 75 percent of New Orleans residents had left the city, it was primarily immoral, welfare-pampered blacks that stayed behind and waited for the government to bail them out. This, as we know, did not turn out good results.
Enter Jesse Jackson and Louis Farrakhan. Jackson and Farrakhan laid blame on "racist" President Bush. Farrakhan actually proposed the idea that the government blew up a levee so as to kill blacks and save whites. The two demanded massive governmental spending to rebuild New Orleans, above and beyond the federal government's proposed $60 billion. Not only that, these two were positioning themselves as the gatekeepers to supervise the dispersion of funds. Perfect: Two of the most dishonest elite blacks in America, "overseeing" billions of dollars. I wonder where that money will end up.
Of course, if these two were really serious about laying blame on government, they should blame the local one. Responsibility to perform – legally and practically – fell first on the mayor of New Orleans. We are now all familiar with Mayor Ray Nagin – the black Democrat who likes to yell at President Bush for failing to do Nagin's job. The facts, unfortunately, do not support Nagin's wailing. As the Washington Times puts it, "recent reports show [Nagin] failed to follow through on his own city's emergency-response plan, which acknowledged that thousands of the city's poorest residents would have no way to evacuate the city."
One wonders how there was "no way" for these people to evacuate the city. We have photographic evidence telling us otherwise. You've probably seen it by now – the photo showing 200 parked school buses, unused and underwater. How much planning does it require to put people on a bus and leave town, Mayor Nagin?
Instead of doing the obvious, Mayor Nagin (with no positive contribution from Democratic Gov. Kathleen Blanco, the other major leader vested with responsibility to address the hurricane disaster) loaded remaining New Orleans residents into the Superdome and the city's convention center. We know how that plan turned out.
About five years ago, in a debate before the National Association of Black Journalists, I stated that if whites were to just leave the United States and let blacks run the country, they would turn America into a ghetto within 10 years. The audience, shall we say, disagreed with me strongly. Now I have to disagree with me. I gave blacks too much credit. It took a mere three days for blacks to turn the Superdome and the convention center into ghettos, rampant with theft, rape and murder.
President Bush is not to blame for the rampant immorality of blacks. Had New Orleans' black community taken action, most would have been out of harm's way. But most were too lazy, immoral and trifling to do anything productive for themselves.
All Americans must tell blacks this truth. It was blacks' moral poverty – not their material poverty – that cost them dearly in New Orleans. Farrakhan, Jackson, and other race hustlers are to be repudiated – they will only perpetuate this problem by stirring up hatred and applauding moral corruption. New Orleans, to the extent it is to be rebuilt, should be remade into a dependency-free, morally strong city where corruption is opposed and success is applauded. Blacks are obligated to help themselves and not depend on the government to care for them. We are all obligated to tell them so.

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The Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson is founder and president of BOND, the Brotherhood Organization of A New Destiny, and author of "The Seven Guaranteed Steps To Spiritual, Family, and Financial Success" guide. He's also host of "The Jesse Lee Peterson Radio Show." For more information, visit www.bondinfo.org.

If Katrina had hit Miami, it would be either totally rebuilt by now or close to it. The problem is the government of New Orleans and Lousiana and, of course, some of the people. The governments are very slow with getting money to the people and then some of the people don't use it to rebuild. Some of the people of NO want everything done for them, with no sweat equity on their part. Some, are even scamming the system to help themselves. Now, not all of the blame rests on these people, a lot goes to the Federal Government and their inability to get goods and housing to these people. I read somewhere, recently, that there are 100's of house trailers just sitting and waiting to be sent to NO, but the government has failed to do so. I really don't know what the answer is.. FEMA sure isn't the answer!!!

It is not the governments job to prepare for us, give us money to rebuild, take us out of a storms path. People need to understand that they must do these things. Self reliance is the answer. I live in a neighborhood where we look out for one another. If a Hurricane was to hit here I have no doubt that we would all pull together to help one another. Government assistance comes after the people do their part. To expect Big Brother to do everything for us is just being to dependent on them. Everyone wonders why are deficit is so large, all these handouts to people unwilling to help themselves is a big part of that.

Miami would have had a better evacuation plan in place. Local authorities are the first line of defense in a situation like this, not the federal government.
The levees were neglected for so long something like this was bound to happen. THAT was a preventable situation. The high concentration of poor people in the Ninth Ward exacerbated the situation. Poor planning and incompetence on the part of the mayor and local officials. It's a crime.

I live in Florida and the answer is YES. We take hurricanes seriously. From local to State government, there are plans in place and people have enough sense to be prepared all throughout hurricane season.

You are ignorant. Where is the blame for the people of this city that did not prepare for this disaster? Billions of dollars have been allocated to New Orleans and as usual the corrupt government of that state has squandered the funds.

I'm sure this answer will be unpopular, but I agree with what Kanye West and some others said, the reason the Feds were so slow to move was because the majority of the people affected were black. The whole New Orleans thing was completely mismanaged. Their Governor was an idiot, their Mayor wasn't much better. It was totally stupid. One thing they should have done early on was turn all the highways into North bound traffic only (or East/West, whatever would get people out of the area the fastest). The evacs should have been MANDATORY, and by that I mean, people have to leave, whether they want to or not, and that's what you have the cops, First Responders, etc. doing, making people get out. They knew that the hurricane was going to hit there, they knew that those levies weren't going to hold, so they had plenty of time to get more people out of town. And if people don't want to go, you arrest them, throw them in a paddy wagon (truck) and get them out of town. That was part of the problem. People didn't try to leave. They were all, "oh, there have been other hurricanes, and they've never been really bad, I'm not leaving my stuff, someone might steal my stuf." For god's sake people, you can replace your freaking stuff, if you die, you ain't going to need your stuff. It's just pl...

I'm sure this answer will be unpopular, but I agree with what Kanye West and some others said, the reason the Feds were so slow to move was because the majority of the people affected were black. The whole New Orleans thing was completely mismanaged. Their Governor was an idiot, their Mayor wasn't much better. It was totally stupid. One thing they should have done early on was turn all the highways into North bound traffic only (or East/West, whatever would get people out of the area the fastest). The evacs should have been MANDATORY, and by that I mean, people have to leave, whether they want to or not, and that's what you have the cops, First Responders, etc. doing, making people get out. They knew that the hurricane was going to hit there, they knew that those levies weren't going to hold, so they had plenty of time to get more people out of town. And if people don't want to go, you arrest them, throw them in a paddy wagon (truck) and get them out of town. That was part of the problem. People didn't try to leave. They were all, "oh, there have been other hurricanes, and they've never been really bad, I'm not leaving my stuff, someone might steal my stuf." For god's sake people, you can replace your freaking stuff, if you die, you ain't going to need your stuff. It's just plain stupid to stay there to "protect" your damned stuff. That happened here in So Cal with the fires. There were a few idiots who stayed to protect their houses, and there were a few, a small number thankfully, who didn't survive...I think it was a total of 17 dead here in San Diego...but I saw one family who had at least two young daughters who stayed and kept watering their house and the trees near the house. And yeah, they did save the house, and no one got hurt, but those idiots risked the lives of two little girls who were about 8 and 10. I felt like they should be investigated for child abuse or child neglect or maybe stupidity. If you want to stay and protect your property, ok, be a fool, but send your kids to safety with a neighbor, relative, friend. If the Hurricane had hit Miami the whole thing would have been handled differently because there are tons of rich old white folks who live there, so oh, yeah, FEMA would have been there immediately. Here in San Diego FEMA was here before the fires were even partly contained, and why? Well, a lot of the property that was burned belonged to rich people. Mostly rich white people. Yeah, some of it was middle classed people, and maybe some were poor, but not too many. In this area, if you are poor, you usually aren't a home-owner. The median price for a home here is a bit over a quarter of a million dollars. So, you tell me...was FEMA here to show that the Agency has improved under new leadership, or because much of the parts of San Diego County that burned was owned by rich people????

Some of you are talking like things would not be different, that the present Administration in the White House would behave the same if Miami was hit with a hurricane like New Orleans was. As I said above, just look at the way they behaved with the fires in Southern California. And no, the State did not contact Bush first, he called the Governator and asked what we needed, as did our Senators and Congressmen/women. There was no delay in getting help. FEMA was here by the 3rd or 4th day of the fires, promising to help people who had no insurance, or who were under insured, and there were government workers just to help people jump through the right hoops in the correct order. Bush was out here by the 4th or 5th day to personally view the destruction of the fires.

And in case you don't understand the scope of this...the death toll of Katrina was way higher than the deaths related to the fires here in San Diego. The destruction of Katrina was much more devasting than the fires here. Approximately 10% or less of San Diego County burned, mostly forest, young growth, brush (because people here still can't get it through their heads that clearing the brush out of canyons will help cut down on fires reaching inhabited areas) and some homes, but nowhere near the destruction that was caused by Hurricane Katrina. Before, during and after Hurrican Katrina, the Federal Government completely mismanaged the assistance they should have been lending. Bush should have been in touch with the Governor of LA and offered whatever Federal Assistance they needed, like he did for California. We were offered National Guard from California, Nevada and other states. Nothing was done for New Orleans until it was too late. And no one will convince me that the Feds would not have behaved differently if a Hurricane of the magnitude of Katrina had hit Miami. First, it is his brother's state. Second, as I said, it is a bunch of rich old white folks who are invariably Republican. Oh, yeah, BTW, San Diego County is also Republican. Go figure.....

Good post. But where did you get the idea that Miami is full of rich old white folks? On the Beach or Coral Gables maybe, but Miami stretches about 50 miles inland and believe me, rich old white folks are not the primary group here. Also, on evacuation, we have been told to evacuate many times, but we haven't because of the animals. People don't want to leave their pets behind and shelters won't accept them, not to mention the problem of fitting horses into your pickup truck. Even if the animals survive, fences are down and the cops won't let you go back to your property afterward. The only exception for us as far as evacuating goes would be fire. You go or you die. I read that California shelters allowed pets -- that's the way to get people to evacuate.

I have a freind here in san diego and she has horses. She moved here from FL and was saying that she could never leave when there was a hurricane because of them. Out here, her horses were evacuated and taken to safety. Even hotels here were allowing pets. Why dont they change things there to allow people to evacuate and not have to leave their pet family behind.

I hope things change for you in Miami. I live in Lake county, Florida and the outcry from people has forced the shelters to accept pets. Get people to right your local government and demand they do something. It worked here and I know it will work there.

Good post dragon but we here on the Florida Panhandle and the Gulf Coast of Mississippi and Alabama are not all rich white people. The difference here was the majority of the people took responsibility for themselves like they did in Southern CA recently. Also FL, MS and AL had organized local leadership with the ability to coordinate with the Feds and the intelligence to evacuate the people. The lives lost in New Orleans were lost needlessly because the people did not do for themselves or protect their family and the Louiasiana Mayor and Governor were enept as you correctly pointed out. Its not a matter of political party but a mindset of the people who would rather "fend for themselves and pick up the peaces with little help from the Government and the other group who waits for the Government to do everything for them.

a lot of people have said good post but i dont think so for the simple fat you just agreed with K.W when he said George Bush is racist. i also have to say that Mississippi ws hit just as hard and are doing MUCH better with equal or less help from the country because of republican leadership in the state.

Hello people Miami had a bad storm in 1992 called Andrew it wasn't as bad as Katrina but it was bad. Living in Miami you know its a risk when a hurricane is coming you know what areas they tell people to get out of first and so on. Miami people are more prepare for hurricanes than any other states its what we live and breath and you really can't compare Miami with Louisiana. I just feel bad for what happen there and pray it never happen again in any other state.

I dont know... after reading the posts here, I think it all boils down to the people and local government. I think NY would stop, figure out a game plan and get to work right away to fix things and not waste time waiting for the Fed. government to step in. What are your thoughts?

I personally think that once again, SMOKEY is right. Everybody tries to wrongly bash the current administration for the problem with Katrina. Another reason it took FEMA so long to get to some areas is that they were still covered in water. I do not know if any other state would have moved any faster. I can hope that something has been learned from Katrina and that the same mistakes would not be made again. But Smokey is correct, the state government has to ask for federal help. The ball will get rolling but these things do not happen over night. Easy to blame someone for the short comings but hard to be thankful for any help.

You sound like a Bush hater. Please remember it's not up to the Federal Government to rush to the State's aid. FIRST, the STATE has to petition to the Federal Government before getting assistance.

People have to understand that OUR Federal Government is NOT our savior. They don't function that way. It's an individual responsibility to take care of yourself FIRST. And yes, there will be times when our Government will respond slower than what we want.

Being an ex military soldier and I currently work for the Federal Government, I know how the wheels turn.

Americans (including myself) are the biggest CRY babies out there.

You can BASH BUSH all day, but remember, he's not KING George. He's not the Supreme ruler. We have checks and balances.

Finally, it was Democrats fault for not responding quickly in New Orleans! The Mayor and the Gov.

We weren't prepared for such a hugh disaster. I don't think it would have made any difference if it was a hurricane hitting any large city on the coast, and earthquake taking out cities in California or multiple F10 tornados taking out the mid-west. . . . .we just weren't prepared. The sad thing is I still don't think we are. With the majority of our National Guard and most of our large equipment in Iraq and Afghanistan, we don't stand a chance.

Yes I think things would have been handled differently because there are so many celebrities that have homes there that they would most definitely spend some of their millions to fix their homes and make where they live look better. I'm not sure what it would look like now but I'm sure it would look better than Louisiana. Excellent question!